If you are registered as Self Employed once a year you will need to fill in a tax return – or Self Assessment form, in the HMRC jargon – to let HMRC know how much you have earned, how much your deductions are and what profit you have made. From this, they will calculate how much tax you owe and send you a demand for payment.

If you fill in your tax return online, the amount of tax you owe will be calculated immediately and you can pay it online; similarly, if you have overpaid income tax that is owed to you, you can arrange for this to be paid back to you on the online form as well.

Submitting your Self Assessment online tends to be simpler, as it will only present the boxes you need to fill in depending on your answers to previous questions.  More information on online Self Assessment can be found on the HMRC website.

You will need to fill in a tax return no matter how much you earn – even if you did not earn any money from self-employment, you still need to fill this in and return to HMRC for their records.

Self Assessment is too complex to go into in much detail here, and the specifics can change each year – instead, take a look at the HMRC Self Assessment pages for more information. There are also many webinars available for free on the HMRC website.

It is possible to have a full- or part-time job and also to work self-employed as well, as long as you declare all your earnings and tax paid in the Self Assessment form.

Every taxpayer in the country is allowed to earn a small amount of money each year and pay no tax on it - your personal tax allowance; if your profits are less than this (that is, your earnings minus your deductions for business-related spending) you will pay no tax.  You will pay a staged amount of tax if you earn over this amount.

A good overview of the income tax process is at the Citizen’s Advice Bureau website, and on the Business Link site.

If you need further help, as well as contacting an accountant, you might find useful tax advice from the following organisations.

All of their websites are free to access and some provide useful services and helplines to specific eligible groups.

•   29 September HMRC (Her Majesty's Revenue and Customs)
  telephone

  0845 010 9000
  telephone

  Self assessment helpline: 0845 60 55 999
  website

  http://www.hmrc.gov.uk
  website

  http://www.hmrc.gov.uk/bst

  Government department (amalgamation of old Customs and Excise with Inland Revenue) responsibile both for collecting personal taxation and customs tariffs. Provides comprehensive information on its functions and your legal responsibilities in paying tax. Services for UK companies trading overseas with little or no exporting experience, from initial queries and market research to advice on finding the right contacts, export procedures and legal issues. Information on VAT and exporting of artworks, national insurance, statutory maternity leave, sick pay and all other personal tax matters. It is your responsibility to register if you are self-employed, by telephoning your nearest office or checking the site - your tax office will then send you the relevant forms and on receipt of them will issue you with a tax reference number. For enquiries or help with your tax return outside office hours, telephone 0645 000 444 or see the IR website for general guidance. Local Business Support Teams (for businesses, as opposed to freelancers/sole traders) provide help and advice to new or small businesses and employers, on topics such as payroll, employment and tax. Free workshops and one to one consultations are available.

•   29 September Central Employer's Helpline
  telephone

  0845 607 0143

  Find out the number of your local tax office - find it quicker by having your last tax office code handy, printed on some payslips and all P45's and P60's.

•   29 September Digita Tax Central
  website

  http://www.digita.com/taxcentral

  Online tax advice and calculation.

•   29 September Citizen's Advice Bureau
  website

  http://www.adviceguide.org.uk
  website

  http://www.citizensadvice.org.uk

  Citizens Advice Bureau are one stop shops where basic advice and information on your rights can be obtained. There are many centres around the UK and also an online advice.

•   29 September T.O.P. - TaxHelp for Older People
  website

  taxvol.org.uk
  email

  taxvol@taxvol.org.uk
  telephone

  01308 488066
  telephone

  0845 601 3321
  address

  TaxHelp for Older People Pineapple Business Park, Salway Ash, Bridport, Dorset, DT6 5DB

  Independent free tax advice service for older people on low incomes (under £17k p.a.) who cannot afford to pay for professional advice. A team of 720 volunteers across the UK can meet with you, or you can contact their helpline. This service was originally provided through the Low Incomes Tax Reform Group (associated with the Chartered Institute of Taxation) but is now provided by Tax Volunteers, an independent organisation, to make free professional advice on personal tax available to older people who could not otherwise afford to pay for it.

•   29 September The Low Incomes Tax Reform Group (LITRG)
  website

  http://www.litrg.org.uk

  An initiative of the Chartered Institute of Taxation to give a voice to those who cannot afford to pay for tax advice. Aimed at improving the tax and benefits experience of disabled people and carers, low income workers (under £15k p.a.), pensioners, migrants and students. Includes useful online guide for low income earners, the self-employed and information on benefits and the tax credits system.

•   29 September Tax Aid
  website

  taxaid.org.uk

  TaxAid is a charity that helps people on low incomes with their tax affairs and to understand the bits of the tax system that apply to them (safely ignoring the confusing 98% that don't), pay only the right amount of tax and help them resolve crises when things go wrong. TaxAid runs a national helpline, face-to-face services in London, Birmingham, Manchester, Newcastle, Plymouth and Shropshire (via Telly Talk), and also gives advice via email, and their website is designed to make tax understandable to any taxpayer.

• tax
• self assessment